The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) most cited violations list is never much of a surprise; reliably appearing in the top 10 are fall protection, scaffolding, and falls from ladders.
Slips, trips, and falls constitute the majority of general industry accidents and cause 15 percent of all accidental deaths, according to OSHA. Falls consistently account for the highest number of fatalities in the construction industry.
Protection Basics
Workers fall for many reasons: unstable working surfaces, improperly positioned ladders, misuse of fall protection, and unprotected sides and edges of working surfaces.
OSHA requires fall protection at 4 feet or more in general industry and any time workers are up 6 feet or more in construction.
When a walking or working surface has an unprotected side or edge at the designated height, management is required to take action.
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Those steps include:
- Develop, implement, and commit to a fall protection program.
- Provide training on the program.
- Evaluate the program regularly to make sure it is effective and determine if changes or updates are needed.
Employers must also assess the workplace to determine if the surfaces on which employees work can safely support them. Then they are required to:
- Select fall protection systems appropriate for given situations.
- Use proper construction and installation of safety systems.
- Supervise employees properly.
- Train workers in the proper selection, use, and maintenance of fall protection systems.
When employees in general industry are exposed to a fall of 6 feet or more above a lower level, one of the following is required:
- Use guardrail systems.
- Use safety net systems.
- Use fall-arrest systems.
- Cover or guard floor holes as soon as they are created.
- Guard or cover any openings or holes immediately.
- Construct all floor hole covers to support twice the weight of employees, equipment, and materials that may be imposed on the cover at any one time.
Generally, OSHA prefers fall prevention systems, such as guardrails, to fall protection systems, like safety nets or fall-arrest devices.
At construction workplaces, employees working 6 feet or more above lower levels must use guardrails, safety nets, or personal fall-arrest systems. These may consist of a full-body harness, a deceleration device, a lanyard, and an anchor point.
Other types of fall protection may be used to the extent allowed under other provisions addressing specific types of work.
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In tomorrow’s Advisor, we’ll get expert advice on fall protection, plus we showcase a dynamic training resource of interactive online courses covering more than 100 key safety topics.